Xploder

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Xploder is a range of cheat systems manufactured for various video game platforms by the British manufacturer Fire International , under the brand name Blaze . The first Xploder was released for the first PlayStation in the summer of 1998 .

The primary purpose of the Xploder is to give the player an advantage not intended by the game. In the language of the game, this is known as "cheating". There are also uses of the Xploder that go beyond the use of cheats, as described below in the section "Fun Codes".

Basic functionality

To maturity of a game game-relevant data is stored in memory on the video game system. The Xploder is able to change this data in order to achieve the desired effect of a cheat. Most of the time, the corresponding data is only set to a constant value in order to give the player, for example, “always 99 lives ”.

In order to address the data in the main memory , an Xploder works with "codes" shown in the hexadecimal system (see below). As a rule, this does not mean complex program code, but just a simple command. However, more complex codes that work with assembly language are also possible.

Explanation of terms

An Xplodercode (short: code) consists of a memory address , a value and a short instruction what the Xploder should do with the value at the address. If "80222222: 0001" is a fictitious example of an Xplodercode for a Nintendo 64 game, then instruction 80 says that the address range from 222222 should be written with the value 0001.

For example, an Xplodercode can also cause the given memory address to be checked for the given value. If they match, the following Xplodercode is executed.

A special case of this example are so-called "Activator Codes", also known as "Joker Codes". They ask which buttons on the controller are currently being pressed and activate the following codes with a certain combination of buttons . One application of this special case are so-called "moon jump" codes.

Developing / discovering your own Xplodercodes is called “hacking” in the relevant scene, those who develop / discover the codes are called hackers.

In some cases the codes published by the 'official' site are encrypted. They then only work on the corresponding cheat system, but not on the competition's cheat systems. This can be disadvantageous for the user. Under certain circumstances, a code can produce different results for different values ​​(for example a modifier for the game figure, which supplies a new figure for each value). If the codes are encrypted, it may not be possible to change the value without an appropriate decryption program. Some cheat systems only accept the entry of encrypted codes, which forces hobby hackers to encrypt their codes as well. Often it is only a matter of time before the code hacker scene brings the necessary decryption / encryption programs into circulation.

The television standards PAL and NTSC are also important for cheat systems. Games that are initially developed for the Japanese market must be revised and adapted for their release in the US and Europe. Entire address ranges are shifted - and a code that provides infinite energy in the American version of the game does not work in the European one. Often codes can be translated from one version to another by determining the difference in the shift in the corresponding address range. Differences between the game versions of different countries within Europe are relatively rare, but can occur.

It is not only given to the manufacturers of cheat systems to create new codes, but also to your users. Be it through aids and tools provided by the manufacturer, or through programs from unofficial sources. One of the most common means of creating code is through trainer software . If the codes are not encrypted, however, it is possible to change the addresses of existing codes, which also makes it possible to make new discoveries without prior knowledge.

History of the Xploder

Emergence

Wayne Beckett is considered the father of the Xploder, who was involved in the development of several cheat modules at Datel , such as the Game Busters . In 1997 he started his own company - Future Console Design - self-employed. This developed exclusively for the Blaze label.

Their first product was the “Xplorer” for the first Playstation, it appeared in the summer of 1998. In several countries, however, the system had to be renamed “Xploder” for licensing reasons.

Blaze Germany

Fire International had a German office that filed for bankruptcy in 2002. The German website was closed; However, all Xploder codes that were formerly available there can still be accessed from the former partner www.mogelpower.de.

Fun codes

Explanation

Effects that do not correspond to the definition of cheating can be achieved using Xploder codes. Your goal is to increase the entertainment value of the game. However, sometimes such codes allow the player to cheat, but this is considered secondary.

example

For The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time , a medieval-themed fantasy game ( Nintendo 64 ), there is an Xploder code that can replace a certain figure in the game with any object stored on the game module. One of these objects is a spacecraft that does not appear in the normal course of the game, a so-called Arwing , which actually comes from the game Lylat Wars .

The “Arwing” is fully functional and integrated into the game: after it has performed an aerial maneuver, it shoots the main character of the game with laser beams . However, players can protect themselves from laser fire with their wooden shield. He can even bring the "Arwing", whose armor can withstand temperatures of up to 9000 ° C according to the Lylat Wars game, with a boomerang, for example , whereupon it explodes.

The corresponding code was developed by two hackers under the pseudonyms "Cendamos" and "JaytheHam" and published on a website.

Why the "Arwing" is in Zelda: Ocarina of Time is not known. It is speculated that Ocarina of Time is based on the Lylat Wars engine and that the Arwing was adopted for testing purposes.

List of Xplodern

Some of the products in the Xploder series are limited in their function as a cheat system to loading manipulated games. There are also products that carry the name "Xploder", but are completely out of the range of cheat systems. The latter are highlighted in italics .

Dreamcast
Xploder (without a trainer, requires a Dreamcast memory card)
Game Boy / Game Boy Color
XploderGB (purple module with built-in trainer to find out your own codes)
Xploder Fun (Yellow module cropped around the trainer)
Game Boy Advance
Xploder Advance (without trainer)
Xploder Action Reloader (not a cheat module, but a kind of memory card)
Nintendo 64
Xploder64 (with built-in trainer to find out your own codes)
Wii
Xploder Cheat Saves (no cheat module, but a CD with predefined, edited save states)
Nintendo DS
Xploder Cheat Saves (no cheat module, but a module with predefined, edited save states)
Xplodermaster
Xbox
Xploder Cheat Saves (no cheat module, but a CD with predefined, edited save states including memory card)
Xbox 360
Xploder Cheat Saves
Xploder Media Center
Xploder Ultimate Care Kit
PlayStation
Xploder (first Xploder, still without a trainer)
Xploder Classic (new edition of the first exploder, without trainer)
Xploder Pro ("best" Xploder there is, instead of a built-in trainer a device / microcomputer called X-Assist was included)
Xploder FX (first XPloder with built-in trainer)
Xploder CD 9000 (first CD-based Xploder developed for the last PlayStation series without parallel port)
Xploder CD 9000 Director's Cut (Xploder CD 9000 with more and revised codes)
Playstation 2
Xploder2 V1
Xploder2 V2
Xploder2 V3
Xploder2 V4
Xploder2 V4 Pro (with USB cable for saves)
Xploder2 V5
Xploder2 V5 Media Center
Xploder2 V5 Pro with Media Center Live!
Xploder Ultimate Care Kit
Xploder HDTV Player
Xploder2 V6
Xploder2 V6 Guitar Hero - Special Edition
Playstation 3
Xploder HD Movie Player with PS3 Cheat Saves & Media Manager
Xploder HDTV Player
Playstation Portable
Xploder Movie Player and Media Center for PSP
Xploder Music Studio
Xploder Ultimate Care Kit

swell

  1. ↑ The Xploder Family - Article from the German Blaze page in the Internet Archive ( Memento from August 16, 2002 in the Internet Archive )

Web links

literature

  • René Meyer, Stefan Redel: The official Xploder manual. Fire International, Willich 1999
  • René Meyer, Volkmar Großwendt: Cheat it! Crack game codes. Markt + Technik, Munich 2001, ISBN 3-8272-6001-9